ASSESSING THE IMPLEMENTATION OF CONTINUOUS ASSESSMENT: THE CASE OF ARBAMINCH UNIVERSITY IN NATURAL SCIENCE DEPARTMENTS

The purpose of this study was to assess the implementation of continuous assessment in Arbaminch University specifically in chemistry, Physics and mathematics department. To this end, a descriptive survey design method was employed. In this study the primary source of data are instructors and students of the selected departments. A total of 50 respondents participated in this study. Data collection tools were questionnaires and semi-structured interview. Based on the data analysis the following major findings were obtained. That study revealed that the majority instructors of the department have good understanding of continuous assessment. Most instructors provide tests and one project work for a given course in as semester; lack of student’s participation, large class size and shortage of time were the major challenges that encountered the implementation of continue assessment. Based on these findings it was safely concluded that the implementation of continuous assessment in selected departments has their own limitation and strong sides Finally, it was recommended that refreshment training should be provided for instructors in the area of continuous assessment, the university should work to solve problem of small class size so that all instructor would be able to implement continuous assessment and Maximizing student’s involvement. It is known that quality education and success in education comes from the active involvement of student. Therefore, students must be encouraged to engage cognitively, emotionally, and physically with the content.